Julia Prins, a fifth-grader at St. John the Baptist School in Savage, is a recipient of the Star of the North Award, given by Rep. John Kline (R-Minn.). Prins is honored for her “Girls of Summer” program that she created and organized last summer with her friends, most of whom are her classmates at school. The girls got together on Wednesdays during the summer, often at the Prins home in Prior Lake, to do fun activities and service projects. Their acts of service included collecting and donating food to a local food shelf, making and collecting items for local charities and sponsoring a water well in Africa. An article on?Prins and “Girls of Summer” appeared in the July 13, 2011 edition of The Catholic Spirit. To see the story online, visit the catholicspirit.com.

St. Thomas Academy heroes collect seven tons of food

Students at St. Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights received the “Heroes in the Making Award” from Minnesota FoodShare for their 2011 Advocacy of the Hungry Food Drive. Cadets collected seven tons of food for St. Paul-based nonprofit Neighborhood House. The 2011 food drive set the one-time donation record for Neighborhood House, surpassing the school’s 2010 donation that held the record previously. STA’s campus ministers will be honored Friday, March 30, during halftime at the Minnesota Timberwolves basketball game.

Epiphany School captures DOLE Flash Mob Contest

A video produced by Epiphany School in Coon Rapids was chosen as the winner of the DOLE Fruit Flash Mob National School Contest. The victory earned the school a $1,000 prize, which was presented by DOLE officials at the school March 8. To view the video on YouTube, visit http://youtu.be/jG_BuQpb7OY.

Local pro-life advocate tries new way to reach women

In an ongoing effort to reach women in crisis pregnancies, local pro-life activist Kalley Yanta of Holy Family in St. Louis Park recently produced a video on YouTube entitled “URWORTHIT.”

Long-time hockey coach Larson wins prep award

Former high school hockey coach Bart Larson, a parishioner at St. Joan of Arc in Minneapolis, received the Cliff Thompson Award for long-term contributions to hockey. He coached for 36 years in the Edina High School system, both as a head coach and as an assistant to legendary coach Willard Ikola, then came out of retirement to coach nine more years at Eastview High School in Apple Valley. Larson received his award March 8 at the state tournament.